Talking doll



1943- J. H. ROTHBERG 9,

TALKING DOLL Filed Jan. 21, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet l cfameafflitkbe NVENTOR mywmza;

ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 26, 1943 TALKING DOLL James H. Rothberg, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor of twenty-five per cent to James P. Jones,'ten per cent to James S. Rothbergand'sixty-five per cent to Blossom Black'Rothberg Application January 21, 1941, Serial No. 375,324

1 Claim.

This invention relates to talking dolls, and

more particularly to those having a phonograph apparatus on the inside thereof.

As is obvious, in a talking doll of this type, many difliculties arise in the satisfactory operation and control of the phonograph mechanism. This is because of the fact that this mechanism must operate in a small space and is substantially inaccessible without providing openings which mar the form of the figure. I realize that certain endeavors have been made to overcome these difficulties but, so far as I am aware, no one has developed a device having the specific advantageous combination and arrangement of parts of that embodied in my invention.

The object of this invention is an easily operated talking doll.

Another object is a phonograph talking doll which may be operated by a single lever.

Still another object is a device of this kind in which a single motion of the lever resets the phonograph mechanism to its starting point and releases the brake.

Still another object is a device in which the same lever which accomplishes the above result may be used for stopping the phonograph.

These and other objects may be accomplished by my invention which embodies among its features a doll, a phonograph therein and a horn on the phonograph extending to an aperture in the chest of the figure, and a means for resetting the phonograph. Said means consist of a curved lever operating against a spring and extending through the surface of the figure, the curved portion adapted to lift up the reproducer and drop it at the beginning of the sound track, and a lug on the lever to reset the brake. There is also a lug on the lever to release the brake and start the phonograph, which lug may be put into operation by a partial stroke of the lever.

Other objects and features may become evident from the following disclosure when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side view, partly in cross section,

f of a doll embodying my invention,

Figure 2 is a front view of the same, Figure 3 is a side view of my improved phonograph apparatus,

Figure 4 is a plan view of the device shown in Figure 3, and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of my improved resetting lever. In the form of a figure having a hollow body to the sides of which are secured inwardly extending braces Ilfor supporting a sound reproducing or phonograph mechanism. A tubular tone arm extension I2 is disposed to assume an upwardly directed angular position, when the doll body is in an upstanding arrangement, for registration with the inner reduced end of an amplifying horn l3 fastened to the upper front portion of the hollow body in registration with an opening covered by screening M or the like.

The phonograph consists of a box shaped casing l5 containing conventional motor mechanism which may be of the spring wound type, Wound through the medium of bevel gearing rotated by a shaft l6 having a button I! on the outside of the figure. There is a flap l8 in the wall of the figure for changing of records, and a lever I9 is mounted to extend through a slot in the wall of the body, at the rear thereof, for starting and stopping the reproducing mechanism.

The sound reproducing'mechanism embodies a disk shaped turn table 20, arranged horizontally in the normal upstanding position of the hollow body, and driven by the motor mechanism in the casing I5 through a center shaft as is well known in the art. disk record on the turn table 20 through a stylus or needle carrying sound box 2| mounted on the outer end of an angular tone arm 22, on the inner end of which the upwardly directed extension tube I2 is formed. The tone arm 22 is pivotally supported on the outer end portion of the horizontal arm of a right angular support lever 25 having the lower end of its vertical arm pivotally mounted on a horizontal support plate 25' fastened to the upper face of the motor casing IS. The horizontal arm of the'lever 25 extends through the tone arm so that the sound transmitting member is supported for horizontal as well as vertical pivotal movement.

Pivotally mounted on the vertical arm of the lever 25 is an angular brake lever 23 disposed in a horizontal plane and having its arms disposed at approximately right angular positions. To the outer end of one-arm of the brake lever is secured a brake pad engageable with the peripheral edge of the turn table disk 20 while the end of the opposite arm of this lever carries an upstanding post 21.

The operating lever l9 embodies an upstanding stem 28 having its lower end pivotally supported on the support plate 25'. At the upper end of the stem is formed a radial upwardly inclined extension 28' merglnginto a further ex The sound is transmitted from a at its outer extremity with an enlarged knob. To I the upper portion or the lever stem 28 is secured a transversely extending loop shaped member providing a pair of angularly directed finger projections 30 and 3| adapted to contact opposite sides of the post 21. A coiled tension spring connects the juncture of the arcuate section 29 and the radial portion 29' of the lever with the post 21 so that it tends to swing this lever to a predetermined position. A spring 26 provides a tension connection between the medial portion of the brake lever 23, that is the juncture of the arms of this lever, and the motor casing l5, as shown to advantage at Figures 3 and 4, for a purpose which will hereinafter become apparent.

The machine is placed in operation by pushing the arcuate section 29 of the operating lever I9 inward of the body to efiect counter-clockwise movement of the lever about the axis of its stem 28. This action causes the finger 30 of the operating lever to engage the post carrying end of the brake lever 23 to swing the latter about the axis of the vertical arm of the lever 25, removing the brake pad from the tum'table to release the latter. The movement imparted to the brake lever functions to swing the tension spring 26 past the pivot center of the brake lever, that is over an extension of the axis of the vertical arm of the lever 25, causing the brake lever to move against the stop pin 34 where it is releasably held by the spring 26. The inward turning movement of the operating lever l9 also swings the radial portions 28' and 29' thereof under the I sound box 2| to initially elevate the same for lifting the stylus thereof from the record and thereafter sliding the sound box substantially radially of the record until it contacts an upstanding stop arm 33 fastened to the motor casing whence the sound box is dropped and the needle thereof.

engages the starting groove of the record which is turned with the turn table through the drive motor due to the release of the brake lever. The

spring 32, upon release of the operating lever l9,-

functions to swing the same in a clockwise direction and to a partially projected position to disengage the same from the sound box, as shown to advantage at Figure 4. Upon completion of the reproduction of the record movement of the turn table is arrested by pulling the projecting end of the operating lever l9 outwardly with the result that the finger 3| is forced against the post 21, as shown in dotted lines at Figure 4, and continues movement to swing the? brake lever from its releasing position to itsturh table engaging braking position where it is held by the tension spring 26. The record is replayed by repeating the operation of pushing the operating operating lever with the lever l9 inwardly to release the brake and carry the stylus from finishing to starting position as previously described.

It will be noted that the tension spring 23 having one end attached to a fixed point on the motor casing and the opposite end attached to the bend of the brake lever is disposed to swing horizontally across the axis or the vertical arm of the support lever 25 so as to resiliently hold the brake lever in turntable contacting braking position orin reversely turned releasing position. Also, the finger 3| carried by the operating lever is mounted so as to engage the post 21 carried on the end of the brake lever when the coiled tension spring 32 swings the operating lever in a clock-wise direction through a portion of its outward movement in order to clear the sound box and permit the latter to move without obstruction over the record.

What is claimed is:

In phonograph mechanism of the character described, a hollow body, a horizontal rotatable turntable adaptedto support a record disk thereon mounted within the body, a horizontally extending support plate fixed within the body, a right angular support lever having'a vertical arm pivotally supported on the plate; a horizontal arm extending from the top of the said vertical arm, a vertically pivoted tone arm pivotally supported on the horizontal arm, a sound box carrying a downwardly directed stylus mounted on one end of the tone arm, an angular brake lever mounted to pivot horizontally about the axis of the vertical arm of the support lever, the said brake lever carrying an upstanding post at one end and a turntable engaging brake pad at the opposite end, a tension spring having one end fixed in the body and the opposite end attached to the brake lever so as to swing horizontally across the axis of the vertical support arm to resiliently hold the brake lever in braking or releasing position, a. manually actuated operating lever pivotally supported for horizontal turning on the support plate, the said lever having adjacent inclined sections slidable under the sound box to lift the same and efiect movement thereof from record finishing to starting position, a finger fixed on the operating lever disposed to engage the brake lever for swinging the latter to turn table releasing position as the operating lever is swung to inwardstarting position, a second finger fixed on the operating lever engageable with the post on the brake lever when the operating lever is swung outward, a tension spring connecting the post on the brake lever yieldingly urging the said second finger against the brake-lever post, and a fixed stop supported adjacent theturntable for'limiting the movement ofthe sound box to starting position.

' JAMES H. ROTHBERG. 

